Method of, and apparatus for separating an untwisted bundle of yarns into individual yarns

ABSTRACT

Improvements in or relating to the method of, and apparatus for separating an untwisted bundle of yarns into individual yarns. The apparatus includes means for separating an untwisted bundle of yarns into individual yarns, and means for guiding such individual yarns to bobbins to wind the yarns on the bobbins. These two means are operably associated with each other, and reciprocally movable along the effective length of the bobbins, so that the length of the yarns running from the yarn separating means to the bobbins is kept constant, hence no change in the tension of the yarns being wound on the bobbins.

I United States Patent 1 3,802,636 OgaWa 1 Apr. 9, 1974 [54] METHOD OF, AND APPARATUS FOR 3,330,492 7/1967 Gonsalves ..242/43 SEPARATING AN UNTWISTED BUNDLE OF FOREIGN PATENTS OR APPLICATIONS YARNS INTO INDIVIDUAL YARNS 15,412 0/1886 Great Britain 242/355 R [76] Inventor: Tomijiro Ogawa, c/o Kawai Mayer 237,695 9/1945 Switzerland 242/ 158.2

Co., Ltd. of 5, Dote, l-ligashino, Konan, Japan 483 Primary EraminerStanley N. Gilreath [22] Filed: 22, 1972 Altorney, Agent, or Firm-Murray Robinson; Ned L.

Conley; David Alan Rose [211 App]. No.: 227,894

30 F h t P D 57] ABSTRACT V t 1 F b 2 g; 1 5 ca on "(my a a 46 8460 Improvements in or relating to the: method of, and ape apan paratus for separating an untwisted bundle of yarns into individual yarns. The apparatus includes means y 242/355 2421/43 for separating an untwisted bundle of yarns into indi- [58] d 43 158 R vidual yarns, and means for guiding such individual 8 o earc h 1584 yarns to bobbins to wind the yams on the bobbins. These two means are operably associated with each other, and reciprocally movable along the effective [56] References cued length of the bobbins, so that the length of the yarns UNITED STATES PATENTS running from the yarn separating means to the bob- 2,524,623 10/1950 Colombu 242/355 R bins is kept constant, hence no change in the tension 2,900,145 8/l959 Hanson 242/1582 of the yams being wound on the bgbbins 2,950,068 8/1960 Rutgers t 242/43 3,312,421 4/1967 Kerr et al 242/158.4 6 Claims, 4 Drawing Figures METHOD OF, AND APPARATUS FOR SEPARATING AN UNTWISTED BUNDLE OF YARNS INTO INDIVIDUAL YARNS This invention relates to improvements in the method of, and apparatus for separating an untwisted bundle of yarns into individual yarns.

According to the prior art, an untwisted bundle of yarns formed in the shape of a cheese has been drawn through stationary yarn separatingmeans and separated into individual yarns, andrthe yarns have been passed through a plurality of movable yarn guiding means disposed opposite to a plurality of bobbins and wound on the bobbinsas the yarn guiding means are reciprocally moved along the distance equal to the effective length of the bobbins. But because the yarn separating means is stationary and the yarn guiding means are movable, the length of the yarn running between the yarn separating means and the bobbin always changes with the reciprocal movement of the yarn guiding means, resulting in a change in the tension of the yarn being wound on the bobbin. This phenomenon has been found not only to lower the quality of the yarn wound on a bobbin and put the shape of the bobbin into disorder, but also cause unevenness in a cloth during the weaving or knitting process.

It is, therefore, an object of this invention to provide an improved method of, and apparatus for separating an untwisted bundle of yarns into individual yarns, wherein the above mentioned drawbacks of the prior art are eliminated.

The present invention will be more fully understood from the following detailed description of a preferred embodiment thereof made with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 is a schematic view showing the front elevation of a preferred embodiment of the apparatus according to this invention;

FIG. 2 is a schematic view showing the side elevation of the apparatus shown in FIG. 1; and

FIGS. 3 and 4 are views schematically showing an example of the driving mechanism for the apparatus according to this invention.

Referring first to FIG. 4, a driving device 1 includes a driving bevel gear 3 provided at the end of a main shaft 2 adapted to be rotated by a motor (not shown), and a pair of opposingly disposed driven bevel gears 4 and 4 engaged with the driving bevel gear 3. The driven bevel gears 4 and 4 are loosely mounted on a driven shaft 5, and adapted to be brought into a fixed relation to the shaft 5 by magnetic clutches 6 and 6' respectively when the clutches 6 and 6' attached to the shaft 5 are actuated. The clutches 6 and 6 are so designed that when one of them is in an engaged position with the corresponding driven bevel gear, the other is in a disengaged position. When the clutch 6 is actuated and engaged with the first driven bevel gear 4, the rotation of the driving bevel gear 3 is transmitted to the driven shaft 5 via driven bevel gear 4 to cause the shaft 5 to rotate in a given direction. On the other hand, when the other clutch 6' is actuated and engaged with the second driven bevel gear 4, the rotation of the driving bevel gear 3 is transmitted to the driven shaft 5 via driven bevel gear 4' to cause the driven shaft 5 to rotate in the opposite direction. Shaft 5 provides an appropriate transmitting means for transmitting rotation from the driving device 1 to a pinion 8 (see FIG. 3).

Referring now to FIGS. 1-3, means 9 is provided for separating an untwisted bundle of yarns into individual yarns. As shown in FIG. 3, yarn separating means 9 may include an apertured bar 9A extending diametrically across and affixed at its ends to a ring 913. A plurality of individual yarn guiding means 10 are provided at equal intervals along the circumference of a circle having a center aligned with the center of the means 9. As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, individual yarn guiding means 10 may include a radially apertured ring 10A. The yarn guiding means 10 are spaced a suitable distance from the yarn separating means 9, and operably associated with the means 9. For example, means 9 and 10 may be associated by means of rods 11A and 11B connecting rings 9B and 10A to form a cylindrical frame. The means 9 and 10 areadapted to be reciprocally moved by a rack 11 formed on rod 11B, and the rack 11 is engaged with the pinion 8. A dog 12 mounted on rod 11A is provided for abutment against limit switches 13 and 13' for actuation of the same. The limit switches 13 and 13 are adapted to govern the actuation of the magnetic clutches 6 and 6' respectively. The same number of bobbins 14 as that of the yarn guiding means 10 are provided close to the means 10 at equal intervals for winding yarns thereon. The bobbins 14 are adapted to be positively rotated, and. the yarn guiding means 10 are reciprocally movable along the effective length of the bobbins 14.

The numeral 15 designates a cheese of untwisted yarns. Yarns 16 are released from the cheese 15, and separated from one another as they are passed through the means 9. Then, the yarns 16 are passed through the yarn guiding means 10, and wound on the bobbins 14. When the dog 12 abuts against the limit switch 13 and consequently the magnetic clutch 6 is actuated and engaged with the driven bevel gear 4, the driven shaft 5 is caused to rotate, and the pinion 8 is caused to rotate as the rotation of the driven shaft 5 is transmitted to the pinion 8, so that the rack 11 engaged with the pinion 8 causes both the means 9 and 10 to move forward. As the means 9 and 10 move forward, the dog 12 reaches the position where it abuts against the other limit switch 13, whereupon the magnetic clutch 6' is actuated and engaged with the driven bevel gear 4' and the driven shaft 5 is caused to rotate in the opposite direction. Thus, the pinion 8 also rotates in the opposite direction, and both the means 9 and 10 are caused via rack 11 to move backward. A forward position of the yarns and means 9 and 10 is shown in solid lines in FIG. 2, a back position thereof being shown in broken lines.

Accordingly, both the yarn separating means 9 and the yarn guiding means 10 repeat reciprocal movement at a constant speed for separating an untwisted bundle of yarns released from the cheese 15 and winding them on the bobbins 14. As shown in FIG. 2, the cheese 15, which provides a source of untwisted bundled yarn, is disposed to one side of the path of reciprocation of the yarn separating means 9, lying in a plane perpendicular to the path of reciprocation of the yarn separating means cutting said path near to the yarn separating means, whereby as the yarn separating means reciprocates the distance from the yarn separating means to the source of untwisted bundled yarn remains substantially constant. Specifically, as shown in FIG. 2, the mean position of the yarn bundle betweensource l5 and separating means 9 is perpendicular to the axis passing through separating means 9 and the center of the circular array of traverse guide means 10. Therefore, the length of the yarns running between the separating means 9 and the bobbins 14 is kept constant, so that no change can occur to the tension of the yarns being wound on the bobbins.

It will be apparent from'the foregoing description that this invention provides a markedly improved method and apparatus for yarn separation in which an untwisted bundle of yarns is separated into individual yarns, guided and wound on bobbins as both the yarn separating and guiding means are reciprocally moved at a uniform speed, whereby the length of yarns running between the yarn separating means and the bobbins is kept constant and any change in the tension of the yarns being wound on the bobbins is prevented. Thus, this invention provides a very effective solution to any problems that have been encountered in the process of yarn separation according to the prior art in which variation in the tension of the yarns being wound on bobbins has been unavoidable.

What is claimed is:

l. The method of separating an untwisted bundle of yarns and winding the individual yarns on an array of parallel axis bobbins wherein the untwisted bundle of yarns is formed as a cheese, comprising releasing the untwisted bundle of yarn from the cheese,

passing the bundle through means for separating said untwisted bundle of yarns into individual yarns disposed concentric with the axis of the annular array,

guiding said individual yarns past a plurality of yarn guiding traverse means disposed in an annular array concentric with the array of bobbins,

winding'the individual yarns one each on different ones of said bobbins, and

reciprocating parallel to the bobbin array axis both said means for separating said untwisted bundle of yarns into individual yarns and said means for guiding said individual yarns to said bobbins at the same uniform speed in the same direction along the effective length of said bobbins.

2. In the apparatus for separating an untwisted bundle of yarns and winding the individual yarns on bobbins, an improvement comprising means for separating an untwisted bundle of yarns into the individual yarns; a plurality of means disposed at equal intervals along the circumference of a circle having a center aligned with that of said yarn seprating means, and adapted for guiding said individual yarns to a plurality of bobbins located opposite to said yarn guiding means respectively; a rack member attached to and connecting said yarn separating means and yarn guiding means; a reversible pinion member engaged with said rack member; and means for rotating said pinion member in opposite directions, whereby said separating means and said yarn guiding means reciprocate at the same speed and in the same direction.

3. The invention as defined in claim 2, wherein said pinion rotating means comprises a driving bevel gear;

a pair of driven bevel gears engaged with said driving bevel gear; a driven shaft on which said driven bevel gears are loosely mounted; said driven shaft being drivingly connected to said pinion; a pair of magnetic clutches attached to said driven shaft and adapted for engagement and disengagement with said driven bevel gears respectively; and a pair of limit switches connected with said magnetic clutches and spaced from each other the distance equal to the effective length of said bobbins.

4. Apparatus of the character described comprising a source of an untwisted, bundle of a plurality of individual yarns an array of bobbins for winding individual yarns from the bundle,

yarn separating guide means whereat a bundle from the source separates into individual yarns as it passes therethrough,

a plurality of bobbin traverse guide means each associated with one of said bobbins and receiving one of said individual yarns from the yarn separating means,

said traverse guide means beingconnected together for motion as a unitary strcutrue,

means for reciprocating said structure relative to said bobbin array while said individual yarns are wound thereon, and

means connecting said yarn separating guide means to the traverse guide means structure for reciprocation therewith at the same speed and in the same direction,

said source being disposed to one side of the path of reciprocation of said yarn separating guide means, lying in a plane perpendicular to said path of reciprocation cutting said path near said yarn separating guide means.

5. Combination of claim 4 wherein said array of bobbins is circular; with the bobbin axes parallel to each other and perpendicular to the plane of the circular array of bobbins;

said bobbin traverse guide means are also disposed in a circular array in a plane parallel to the bobbin array, the traverse guide means array lying concentrically within the bobbin array,

said yarn separating guide means lying on a perpendicular to the plane of the traverse guide means array passing through the center of the circular array of the traverse guide means,

the direction of reciprocation of the traverse guide means structure and of the yarn separating guide means connected thereto being along the axis of said structure defined by the center of the traverse guide means array and the yarn separating guide means.

6. Combination of claim 5 wherein the mean position of the untwisted bundle of yarn between the source thereof and said yarn separating means is perpendicular to said axis of the traverse guide means structure and yarn separating means connected thereto. 

1. The method of separating an untwisted bundle of yarns and winding the individual yarns on an array of parallel axis bobbins wherein the untwisted bundle of yarns is formed as a cheese, comprising releasing the untwisted bundle of yarn from the cheese, passing the bundle through means for separating said untwisted bundle of yarns into individual yarns disposed concentric with the axis of the annular array, guiding said individual yarns past a plurality of yarn guiding traverse means disposed in an annular array concentric with the array of bobbins, winding the individual yarns one each on different ones of said bobbins, and reciprocating parallel to the bobbin array axis both said means for separating said untwisted bundle of yarns into individual yarns and said means for guiding said individual yarns to said bobbins at the same uniform speed in the same direction along the effective length of said bobbins.
 2. In the apparatus for separating an untwisted bundle of yarns and winding the individual yarns on bobbins, an improvement comprising means for separating an untwisted bundle of yarns into the individual yarns; a plurality of means disposed at equal intervals along the circumference of a circle having a center aligned with that of said yarn seprating means, and adapted for guiding said individual yarns to a plurality of bobbins located opposite to said yarn guiding means respectively; a rack member attached to and connecting said yarn separating means and yarn guiding means; a reversible pinion member engaged with said rack member; and means for rotating said pinion member in opposite directions, whereby said separating means and said yarn guiding means reciprocate at the same speed and in the same direction.
 3. The invention as defined in claim 2, wherein said pinion rotating means comprises a driving bevel gear; a pair of driven bevel gears engaged with said driving bevel gear; a driven shaft on which said driven bevel gears are loosely mounted; said driven shaft being drivingly connected to said pinion; a pair of magnetic clutches attached to said driven shaft and adapted for engagement and disengagement with said driven bevel gears respectively; and a pair of limit switches connected with said magnetic clutches and spaced from each other the distance equal to the effective length of said bobbins.
 4. Apparatus of the character described comprising a source of an untwisted, bundle of a plurality of individual yarns an array of bobbins for winding individual yarns from the bundle, yarn separating guide means whereat a bundle from the source separates into individual yarns as it passes therethrough, a plurality of bobbin traverse guide means each associaTed with one of said bobbins and receiving one of said individual yarns from the yarn separating means, said traverse guide means being connected together for motion as a unitary strcutrue, means for reciprocating said structure relative to said bobbin array while said individual yarns are wound thereon, and means connecting said yarn separating guide means to the traverse guide means structure for reciprocation therewith at the same speed and in the same direction, said source being disposed to one side of the path of reciprocation of said yarn separating guide means, lying in a plane perpendicular to said path of reciprocation cutting said path near said yarn separating guide means.
 5. Combination of claim 4 wherein said array of bobbins is circular; with the bobbin axes parallel to each other and perpendicular to the plane of the circular array of bobbins; said bobbin traverse guide means are also disposed in a circular array in a plane parallel to the bobbin array, the traverse guide means array lying concentrically within the bobbin array, said yarn separating guide means lying on a perpendicular to the plane of the traverse guide means array passing through the center of the circular array of the traverse guide means, the direction of reciprocation of the traverse guide means structure and of the yarn separating guide means connected thereto being along the axis of said structure defined by the center of the traverse guide means array and the yarn separating guide means
 6. Combination of claim 5 wherein the mean position of the untwisted bundle of yarn between the source thereof and said yarn separating means is perpendicular to said axis of the traverse guide means structure and yarn separating means connected thereto. 